Car-coupling.



No. 894,496. l PATENTED JULY 28, 190s.

. G. G.,HARL1N.

GAR" GOUPLING. APPLICATION FILED MAY 9, 1907.y

I I gvwenoz Witness o i b w w l we* dlgm/ PATENT oFFIo.

GEORGE C. HARLIN, OF OTTUMWA, IOWA.

CAR-COUPLING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 9, 1907. Serial N o. 372,719.

Patented July 2s, 190s.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGEC. HARLIN,

citizen of the United States of America, and

resident of Ottumwa,in the county ofWapello and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplers, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to car couplers and particularly to an improvement in couplers of the Janney type, in which novel means are provided for retaining the knuckles of the couplers interlocked; novel means being also provided for permitting the release of the nuckle-retaining members, while the said knuckles are in interlocking engagement in order that as the cars move apart, the knuckles are permitted to swing out of engagement A to uncouple. v

An object of this invention is to provide novel means for retaining the latch or knuckle-retaining device in its disengaged osition, that is, when the said latch is out ofp engagement with a shoulder in the draw-head. When cars'are standing, and it is the purpose of the trainman to uncouple one or more cars, the latch may be set to permit the knuckles to swing and the trainman need not be in personal attendance at the time that one car is moved away from the other 'in order to permit this disengagement for the latch may be set in its lelevated or disengaged position and held thereby until the cars move a art when, through the eamming action of the latch retaining device, the said retaining device is elevated and thrown out of engagement with the said latch to permit swinging of the latchwith the movement of the knuckle. I

A still further obj ect of this invention is to provide a novel form of latch retaining device to be hereinafter termed a detent, whereby the said detent through gravity interlocks with a shoulder of the latch when the said latch is rotated to throw its nose out of engagement with a shoulder in the'draw-head.

Finally an object of this -invention is to provide a car coupler which will prove comparatively inexpensive to manufacture as well as eiiicient and satisfactory in use.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, in which- Figure 1, is a perspective view of the front end of a car with the coupler embodying the invention applied thereto. Fig. 2, is a horizontal sectional view of vthe coupling head with a fragment of the draw-head. Fig. 3, is a transverse sectional view back of the detent. Fig. 4, is a pers ective view of the knuckle, tail-piece and atch in assembled relation. Fig. 5, is va transverse sectional view illustrating, in detail, certain features of the invention.

In the drawings A, denotes a ,car which may be of any ordinary construction, B, the draw head and C, the coupler head which may be of any ordinary construction.

The interior of the draw-head is provided witha shoulder D, formed by recessing the bottom ofthe draw-head and the upper wall of said draw-head is rovided with an opening E, the walls of which act as a guide for the nose of the latch as it is moved on the tailpiece of the knuckle.

The knuckle F, is pivoted in the draw-head by the pin Gr, and the tail-piece II, of said knuckle has a lug I, which lies in a recess J, in the wall of the draw-head. The engagement of the .lug I, with the walls of the recess J, forms a bearing which, to a certain eX- tent, relieves the strain on the pivotal pin G, and has a tendency to prevent fracture of the said pivotal pin. The tail-piece has an eX- tension K, on which the latch L, is rotated, the said latch having a nose M, which engages the shoulder D, of the draw-head when the parts are in locked position and when the cars are coupled.

The latch is provided with an annular iiange N, terminating in a shoulder O. The annular flange is utilized to engage the eXible operating means P, here shown in the form of a chain which has its end suitably secured to the latch. The chain or iieXible connection lies in engagement with the annu-v through the hole in the draw-head and the latch is partially rotated on its pivot until its ends assume the position-shown in Fig. 3, when the shoulder O, thereof comes into valinement with the detent S, which is slidably held in an aperture in the upper wall of the draw-head. The lower end of the detent is provided with a cam T, which falls into engagement with the shoulder O, and the latch When such movement -is held in its elevated position until the cars v -are moved apart.

takes place, the knuckles are swung on their pivots and the tail-pieces thereof describe an arc of a circle traveling from one side of the draw-head to the other. When motion is communicated to the tail-pieces, the caln- Ining action of the shoulders O, on the cams P, suffices to lift the detent until it clears the upper edge of the shoulder and the latch is therefore free to swing from under the detent. With a return of the parts to the position shown in Fig. 2, the detent will again be elevated and will assume the position in Fig. 3, upon the partial rotation of the latch as heretofore described and theoperation will be repeated.

As shown in Fig. 1, the nose M, of the latch is projecting into the opening E, and said latch swings from side to side as the tail piece describes its arc in movement. When the tail-pi`ece is returned to the position shown in Fig. 2, the nose thereof will gravitate to the position shown in dotted lines to Fig. 3, and the fact that the latch is in engagernent with the detent S, will also act on the detent and cause it to rotate on its pivot. The detent is held in operative relation to the latch and through the medium of the cross pin s, which it engages, the upper wall of the knuckle pivoted to the draw-head and having a tail piece provided with an extension, a

latch rotatable on the extension and having a nose adapted to engage the shoulder of the draw-head, means for rotating the latch, a shoulder on the latch, the nose of the shoulder when rotating being guided by the walls of the opening of the drawhea d, a vertically slidable gravitating detent having a cani surface adapted to engage the latch for retaining the latch disengaged from the shoulder of the draw-head, the relation of the shoulder and the cam of the detent being such that the shoulder will elevate the cam when the tail piece is moved.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this 2nd d ay of May, 1907.

GEORGE C. HAliLlN. Witnesses:

HENRY W. AXFORD, WALTER C. PAWLoNs, Sr. 

